Improvement in irons for curling hair



' UNITED STATES PATENT OEEICE.

HIRAM S. MAXIM, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

IMPROVEMENT IN IRONS FOR CURLING HAIR.

Specilication forming part of Letters Patent No. 57,354, dated August 21, 1866.

To all whom it may concern 'Be it known that I, H. S. MAXIM, of Boston, in the county of Suffolk and State of Massa chusetts, have invented an Improved Hair- Gurling Instrument; and I do hereby declare that the following, taken in connection with the drawing which accompanies andforms part of this specification, is a description of my invention suiiicient to enable those skilled in the art to practice it.

The invention relates to a novel means for heating the well-known curling iron or tongs used by hair-dressers for curling hair, and it consists in combining with and so as to iorm part of such instrument a burner or tube through which gas or other inflammable tluid is burned while the instrument is being used, whereby the curling-iron Inay be kept constantly and uniformly heated; also, in combining with such an instrument, made with a gas or other burner, a steam-generating chamber, arranged in such manner that the curling# tube Inay be heated by the circulation of steam.

The drawing represents, partly in central section and partlyin elevation, an instrument embodying my invention.

a denotes the curling-iron or heater; b, a rod or jaw, which, in connection With the heater a and the handle c d, may make up a pair of tongs.

In the shank c is placed a tube or burner,f, opening` into a flame-chamber, g, to which air for support ot' combustion enters through opening t'. This tube extends up from a gas or fuel chamber, h, whichl chamber may be a reservoir for containing alcohol or other fluid to be inianied at the mouth of burner f, or may be (as seen in the drawing) a chamber for reception of inammable gas, the chamber eX- tending through the handle andhaving an O extension, Z, for attachment of a flexible gastube to be applied to a common gas-burner, as will be readily understood.

The heat from the iiame impin gin g directly against the roof of the name-chamber may, by simple conduction, be made to heat the rod a., which for this purpose may be made either solid or hollow. I prefer, however, to make a steam-generating chamber. 7c, above the ilame chamber, making the rod et hollow, so that by placing water or other Iiuid in the chamber k steam evolved by the heat from the iiame will circulate through the heater or tube a, and will thus keep the tube at the requisite heat.

It will be obvious that by using au instrunient oi' this construction, combining` directly with the curling iron or rod the source of its heat, the trouble and annoyance attending the heating of an iron in a stove or lamp and the cooling ot' the saine while being used are avoided, no attent-ion being required after once lighting the ijame at the burner, no

change of instrument being necessary, and the curling-tool being kept uniformly and constantly heated.

I claim- 1. In combination with a hair-curling iron or rod, and so as to form part thereof', a iiame burner and chamber and a fuel or gas chamber for heating the iron or rod, substantially as described.

2. In combination with the flame-chamber and cullingrod, the steanrgenerating chamber arranged to operate substantially as set forth.

HIRAM s. MAXIM.

Witnesses F. GoULD, J. B. CROSBY. 

